Software often includes a menu system as part of a user interface (UI), including some combination of menus, context menus, toolbars, pop-ups, widgets, buttons, and the like. Software for performing involved tasks, such as editing and/or authoring of content, often provides a large amount of functionality, but at the cost of a complex menu system.
Menu systems are challenging to navigate, as functionality can be deeply nested within a cascade of menus and pop-ups. Furthermore, functionality discoverability is difficult, as the terminology employed by the user interface may not match the expectations of the end user. Moreover, even if a user knows a particular piece of functionality exists, they frequently forget where in a menu system the desired functionality can be found. Overly complex menu systems are such a problem that software designers often intentionally limit the functionality of the software they produce in order to achieve a simpler, more stream-lined menu system.
Persistently displayed menu systems take up valuable screen “real-estate”. While all form-factors are affected, the loss is particularly acute on handheld and mobile devices, such as touch-screen phones, tablets, and the like. In some cases, entire classes of functionality, such as editing and authoring, is impractical on these smaller form factor devices.
Therefore, there is a need for an improved framework that addresses the abovementioned challenges.